Ford was widely tipped to succeed Greg Chappell as head coach of the Indian national side, but the 46-year-old turned his back on the position to remain with English county side Kent.

It was a snub that stunned Arthur, who admitted he was "75% certain" Ford would take the job.

"We had a beer together in Chennai, and I got the impression that he was going to go for it," Arthur told SuperCricket.

"He sounded 75% certain. Obviously the other 25% grew as he thought more about what the job entailed."

Arthur admitted the Afro-Asia series was not a hit with the cricket-mad Indians.

"It was very low-key," he said. "It did get some coverage in India, but much less than an India-South Africa series. But it was all for the good and development of cricket."